Not since the 1950 revolution has any district headquarter been captured by rebel forces. The overrunning of Dunai has changed that. Former prime minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai was prepared to talk to the Maoists and was preparing the groundwork when he was removed.

He was doing his best to bring the Maoists to the negotiating table and was succeeding at that. Koirala removed him and became prime minister, declaring that Bhattarai was inefficient, could not control corruption and there was insecurity in the country.

Koirala promised to check corruption, provide good governance and resolve the Maoist problem. The Dunai attack has proved that he has been unsuccessful and it is high time that he left office.

Around 1,000 rebels overran the village, 14 policemen were killed, another dozen or so taken hostage, a bank was looted, government offices destroyed and important documents were burnt. The police, it seems, had prior knowledge of the attack and yet were unsuccessful in holding their ground.

People feel that all this is because of the inability of the prime minister to do anything. A committee has been formed to investigate the Dunai attack but everyone is sure nothing substantial is going to emerge out of that. The prime minister is to blame for this incident and there is no reason why he should not quit.